Tomb Raider: The City of Black Water
by Buddhacide
Summary: Set after the 2013 game. Lara Croft is now a full-time adventurer funded by her best friend, Samantha Nishimura. Her new journey takes her to the ruins of Khara-Khoto in the remote deserts of North China, hunting a Buddhist artifact coveted by the Tangut Empire's long-dead kings. What secrets - and monsters - await? Contains original characters, plus mild L x S romantic friendship.
1. Prologue: Restless Spirits

**- TOMB RAIDER - **

**- THE CITY OF BLACK WATER -**

_Set after the 2013 game. Lara Croft is now a full-time adventurer funded by her best friend, Samantha Nishimura. Her new journey takes her to the ruins of Khara-Khoto, hunting an artifact coveted by the Tangut Empire's long-dead kings. Contains original characters and mild romantic friendship._

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Author's note: Happy Easter 2013! Thanks for choosing this Tomb Raider fanfic! I am by no means a Tomb Raider expert. I just really enjoyed the strength and character of the rebooted Lara Croft and decided that some expansion on her girl power was in order. Please forgive me if the storytelling is done awkwardly: I rarely do adventure tales like those of Tomb Raider. But I thought the potential was too fun (and grrlsome) to pass up. First comes this prologue as a prelude of the fun to come…

Disclaimer: This Buddhacide production (lol XD) inevitably contains a few original characters and enemies since there won't be a new Tomb Raider game for some time. But what I'm trying to do here is to make this original adventure intrude as little as possible on the canon storyline – after all, we all know Lara's going to continue adventuring after the reboot; Sam's role as her financier might not be so certain however. No matter. I hope you enjoy my new superheroine's (well, she is to me) next adventure! And usually I'm uncomfortable with requesting reviews despite taking very seriously all criticism, but since this is a genre I've never tried before, I'd welcome your feedback on anything I've done right or wrong.

Have fun! ^.^

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**Prologue: Restless Spirits**

* * *

_London, the British Museum_. _19:45 hours._

Samantha Nishimura was about to conclude her lecture in the Japanese Galleries.

"And that concludes the results of what we found on that mythic, very dangerous island. When I was a child, my mother told me that our house was descended from the Yamatai people. I thought that was an old folk tale meant to legitimize our family's nouveau riche identity. Certainly a Yamatai bloodline would have elevated us beyond even Lord Croft's pedigree!" she joked, to scattered mirth and chuckles. Garbed in a graceful bright-red blouse, her smiling face turned somber. "But I would never have thought that I could experience, firsthand, the majesty and terror of that ancient island. I saw things that would be too absurd and outlandish to tell such a distinguished audience of scholars and museum aficionados. At the very least, however, Japanese scholars can now collaborate with their international colleagues to publish a much more informed series of monographs about the origins of Japanese civilization and Queen Himiko's role in history. So I will end here, and open the floor for discussion, questions, and of course, wine.

"And by the way: We could not have come this far without the help of my friend, Lara Croft." The stylish, black-haired woman glanced at the ponytailed brunette directly in front of her, standing with the professors in a light-blue dress. The British lady winked, grinning, and Sam noticed, flashing her an encouraged beam as she continued. "Indeed, without her research, insight, and perseverance, we would never have even made it to Yamatai. So she deserves as much credit as anyone else, and our achievements up to now will all be dedicated to our late mentor and friend, Conrad Roth. My calling from hereon, as a filmmaker, producer, and translator is to live up to Roth's impeccable standards of service and friendship. Thank you all, and have a wonderful evening," she concluded to the clapping that echoed throughout the British Museum.

Sam stepped away from the lectern and gathered up her notes. Tonight was the grand opening of the Yamatai forum, and Lara Croft had been invited to Sam's inaugural speech. It was only fitting, that many months after their surreal shipwreck on the real deal, that an academic conference would be convened to discuss the implications for Japanese history and East Asian scholarship as a whole.

Lara didn't care for cocktail receptions, but she wasn't uncomfortable around good company either. She was part of the high society she felt so indifferent towards, after all. This reception was hardly a gathering of the viscounts, barons, dukes, and other Peers of the Realm that made up the Croft family's inner circle. Chatting amongst themselves were professors of history and archaeology from different universities, their students, art collectors, and editors, as well as the museum's directors and delegates of various foundations and heritage charities. Yamatai had long since been a historical mystery for Japanese scholars and their colleagues in London and elsewhere. To have a member of the Nishimura family speak personally to them about it was an event as rare as any priceless artifact.

But Sam had already departed from the company of esteemed scholars, writers, and journalists, and Lara followed suit so they could talk in private.

* * *

_Clack, clack clack_, went their high heels. Lara stopped walking only when Sam did. She gazed at Sam's bare back. She was looking out the window, down at the courtyard of the museum. "That was a good speech, Sam. And you look great," declared Lara. "Why do Eurasians always look so beautiful?" she asked, invoking Sam's Japanese father and Portuguese mother.

"Mum's modeling career might have had something to do with it," said Sam dryly. Lara couldn't help giggling at the wry answer.

It was true that Sam was stunningly pretty, and Lara wasn't unused to polite compliments about her own attractiveness, too. The young women were a perfect match – one was of traditional British blue blood, the other of nouveau riche heritage. Both had inherited eye-watering wealth and not afraid to enjoy their assets (although Sam often teased Lara for being much more frugal). Most of all, they were both impulsive and adventurous. They fed off each other's loneliness and uncertainty in the world. Had Sam lost herself to Himiko on that evil island, Lara doubted she would have returned to civilization either.

There was no denying the truth. The fellow UCL alumni needed each other. Desperately.

"I'm not used to giving talks. At least it masked the evil that we endured to get back to London, that's for sure," sighed Sam, hugging herself. She looked at Lara briefly, as if expecting something, but that expression was gone as she spoke again. "When are you setting off again?"

Lara shifted awkwardly. "I was actually going to go yesterday, but since your family invited me directly to come to this reception… I couldn't… and didn't want to refuse."

"If it wasn't for me, you would have left the UK already, then," said the filmmaker, her face falling further.

Lara nodded reluctantly. "That's right. You know where I'm headed, after all."

This was it. This was going to be her next big expedition, although this time she wasn't involving anyone of the Endurance crew (she doubted they would have had the stomach for it, anyway). The Nishimura family had business interests in the People's Republic of China, and Beijing was the perfect base from which to launch her voyage – deep into the province of Inner Mongolia, where the ruins of Khara-Khoto rested: the City of Black Water. It was not actually an unknown location: on the contrary, several popular documentaries had been made about Khara-Khoto. It was simply too remote to be a viable tourist destination, and while it remained the object of fascination for many scholars of Mongolian, Chinese, and Inner Asian history, much was still unknown about the civilization that created it… the culture of the Tangut people.

"Why do you always need to choose the ominous-sounding locales?" wondered Sam wistfully. "Only you would enjoy following in the footsteps of Russians," she chastised, referring to the bygone Russian explorers and scholars that had come to Khara-Khoto in the early twentieth century. Lara chuckled, and Sam shook her head sadly. "That wasn't really a joke, Lara," she rebuked.

"Oh," replied the budding adventurer, slightly embarrassed.

"Let's see. There are only three or four Tangut specialists in the entire world, probably all on life support. Tangut logographic script is even more complex than Classical Chinese. And unless you've been taking intensive courses behind my back, I'd say your Mandarin alone should be pretty crap. We know the Tanguts were a ferocious and patriotic people that also believed in magic and curses – their entire language was built to hide the mystic secrets of esoteric Buddhism and North Asian shamanism. And you want to parachute yourself into that terrifying city in the Chinese desert! Even the locals say those ruins are haunted and cursed! Couldn't you have picked a place that sounded just a little less frightening than Yamatai?"

Lara felt herself shrinking before Sam's growing frustration. Rarely did she see Sam express such negative passion. "Look, Lara. Until Yamatai, we never even believed in fantastic things like Stormguards, _oni_, or demented sun cultists… let alone a shamanic spirit queen like Himiko." Sam shivered at the horrific memories of her abduction by the Solarii cult, and Lara wanted to hug the vulnerable woman. Sam looked at Lara uncertainly. "You remember all that we went through, don't you? And now you're going to the ruins of a medieval empire that had the guts to take on China's Song Dynasty. Only Genghis Khan could really tame them, and Genghis Khan is hardly a bleeding-heart liberal."

"Sam," murmured Lara. "Calm down."

The former media student looked away. "Sorry. It's just… I mean, who knows what you will encounter in those ruins of a city?"

Lara grimaced. Her best friend had a point. The Tangut Empire was not so mysterious as the inhabitants of Yamatai, for some of their native literature had survived despite almost no records in the seminal Yuan chronicle, _Three Historiographies of the Yuan Dynasty_. Known to the Chinese as the Western Xia, the Tanguts were a people that staked out a dominion that endured until the death of Genghis Khan, upon which the ascendant Mongol Empire wiped out its people, culture, and the physical fabric of its civilization.

But aside from their intriguing military history, what fascinated Lara was the discovery that a Russian excavator called Kozlov had made in 1907. During his excavation of Khara-Khoto, he mined a sculpted head of a Buddha that was believed to decide the fortunes of Tangut emperors – whether they'd rise to an age of prosperity, or fall before their enemies – just like how a sacrificial maiden of Yamatai blood could determine Queen Himiko's next body.

The parallels between this astrological artifact and Himiko were only poetic and superficial. But it seemed worthwhile to choose Khara-Khoto as her next target for adventure and research. "I know you won't be coming back to Britain for much longer, and the Buddha's head definitely sounds like something up our alley," said Sam, staring down at the floor. "So I persuaded dad and mum to provide you with what you need. You told me you became proficient with the bow while you were saving everybody, so you'll get your whooshing arrows of fiery death. But we've also pulled some strings with an arms dealer friend to procure some pistols and light firearms. You can't go into Khara-Khoto with nothing. Our loss of innocence, so to speak, should have taught us that."

"Thanks, Sam."

"My family has some academic connections in Beijing. They should hopefully have some Tangut sources you can follow up on. You might want to stop off in the capital first. No one just parachutes into Khara-Khoto with a backpack."

"Thanks, Sam," repeated Lara. She really didn't know what else to say. She owed so much to Nishimura.

The Nishimura heiress stared into Lara's eyes again. "But what if I had said no?" she demanded, crossing her arms defiantly. True, she pretty much never said _no_ to Lara, but for argument's sake… "What if I challenged you to raise your own funds? What if our family actually declined to go along with you and left you to hang high and dry? Would you be so keen, stingy daughter of the tenth Earl of Abbington?"

"This is about more than money and research. I've found something I can devote my life to. But I need you so much more than I need money. Without your support, I wouldn't be able to keep up my morale."

"I know what you mean. The thrill, the sense of accomplishment must be unparalleled for you. But at what price? I love all the crazy things we do together, and all the better if we can travel the world. But I never expected to be hunted by crazy cultists to host the spirit of a shaman queen! You've already lost a family friend who meant so much to you. What about me?" cried Sam, her voice rising to a slightly shrill pitch. "Have you ever paused to think about how worried I feel for you?"

"That wasn't called for, Sam," deplored Lara, her growing anger flaring for once. "You don't need to bring Roth into this. You don't think I felt terror every moment we spent on Yamatai? Grief? Despair? I shed as many tears as blood, I bet!" Sam jumped at her aggressive voice, and to Lara's surprise, Sam's hurt expression seemed to match the pain in her own heart – Roth's loss still felt raw and sore, and she doubted either would ever heal completely from that. "I want to see your smile, too," she said quickly, turning down her voice and relaxing her unconsciously clenched fists. "I'm going to return to you. Always… each and every time."

Sam moved closer, her downcast eyes shining apologetically. The museum was growing quiet. They had been talking for an unexpectedly long time. Even Sam's guests were departing. But the host of tonight's reception paid no heed. Before Lara could break the unusually awkward silence, the Japanese mogul's heiress threw her arms around her tightly. She raised her head to gaze up at the surprised aristocrat.

"You've got to come back to me, alive and well," she whispered into Lara's ear. Her nose touched Lara's skin tightly in the museum's cool night. "Swear it. Or I'm never supporting your trips again."

_How silly. Typical Sam. The dead don't need cash_, thought Lara to herself. She stroked Sam's black hair tenderly, closing her eyes as she sank into the warmth of Nishimura's arms. Thank God that the girl embracing her was no longer trembling or crying. Not like those nights on the accursed island, when they were drenched in sweat and tears and blood. "You've got that right. I _will_ come back to you, demons and weird things be damned."

Samantha stifled a whimper, pressing her face against Lara's collarbone. "You promised, okay?"

Miss Croft held Sam tighter in her cuddle. "I'll live up to your priceless trust in me." She opened her eyes as Sam sighed in satisfaction and relief, her chestnut irises burning with enthusiasm and impatience. Everything was settled now. Her equipment was all ready. Her tickets had been booked. Her expenses would be taken care of. Her financier had overcome her fear of losing her.

Inner Mongolia and the relics of dead Tangut emperors awaited her.

_Next stop: Beijing_, she thought, adrenaline surging silently within her veins.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	2. Chapter 1: With Allies Like These

**Chapter 1: With Allies Like These**

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Hi and welcome back to Tomb Raider: The City of Black Water ^.^ This is a follow-up fanfic to the 2013 reboot of the Tomb Raider franchise, which recasts Lara Croft as a more realistic and vulnerable character than her past reincarnations. I have pretty much no experience in the Tomb Raider canon and lore, and am writing pretty much from my own research into the Tangut Empire (a period of history I've always been interested in) and my experience of the new Tomb Raider game. Lara's new adventure is set in the deserts of China, as she races against mysterious forces to claim a holy Buddhist artifact…

Have fun and any feedback is appreciated, as I'm just a beginner at Tomb Raider stories. ^o^

* * *

It was a chilly midnight in Heathrow Airport.

"Luggage all checked in?" asked Samantha tiredly, as Lara slumped down on one of the lounge chairs. The lean and vigorous Lara was in her tank top and khaki, quasi-military trousers and shoes. She was as rough-and-tumble as ever, but retained that quiet air of calm and class, of confidence and courage. Far from a British native, Sam was dressed more warmly, hugging a black jacket to herself with equally leg-hugging jeans and boots. Soon, Lara would have to go through Departures, and the two women were enjoying some final private moments together. Lara would be spared Economy Class, for the Nishimura clan's private jet was awaiting her on the tarmac. All she needed to do was let the immigration officers know exactly who was helping her pull strings.

"Yeah. I didn't take too much. I guess I'm just looking to survive on more than one pair of undies this time." Lara rubbed her nose in tired contemplation, a rare, scholarly gesture as Sam laughed at her dark joke. "I heard it was in the twelfth century – around the year 1124 – that the Tanguts shot to supremacy in Inner Asia. Amidst the sand, oases, and steppe storms of the Silk Road, their elite Iron Sparrows rode handsome, black-mane horses across the plains and overran Chinese and tribes alike."

"Well, that's a good start. I've taken some weight off your back and done more research for you." Sam lifted up a heavy-looking, intimidating tome with the title: _A Primer to the Religion of the Western Xia_. "This book was written by Professor Zhang Chunghui at Peking University, and I've asked him to save a spot in his schedule for you. Just let him know you're Lord Croft's daughter." She flipped through to her bookmarked page. "Anyway, it was in the reign of Emperor Renzong that Buddhism really became part of the imperial state. According to the Tiansheng code, the emperor had three kinds of priests advising him: Supreme Preceptors, State Preceptors, and Imperial Preceptors – all charged with the task of blessing the empire, warding off enemies, and protecting the royal dynasty from demonic threats.

"Right… and the Buddhism of the Tanguts was a pretty special kind, right?" confirmed Lara, looking up and smiling at Sam. "A mix of Tibetan, Chinese, and native folklore."

"Yeah. And what's really interesting about this Buddhism is that its function was was not so much religious, but protective," noted Sam. "The Preceptors used Buddhism's sacred power to protect and consecrate the country. As long as the holy priests did their duty, the emperor's reign would be long and prosperous, and the country wouldn't fall. And what the emperor relied on most was a sacred head of Buddha, an astronomical treasure simply called the Constellation." Sam raised an eyebrow. "The preceptors used this Constellation, this Buddha head, to protect the emperor."

"This is the crucial link, then. It must be the Tangut Empire's most important artifact. Their holy grail of sorts. A key to a world of unknown mysteries, a world of new discovery and romantic religion and culture," concluded Lara, rising from her seat. She glanced at Sam, who looked away quickly. "Then I guess it's time for me to go," she said quietly. "I've got no time to waste if I'm going to get back into this business."

"It's not too late to turn away from all this," whispered Sam, visibly shivering, as if sensing something terrible was going to happen when Lara stepped on that British Airways flight. "You know what... we could pay a fee for cancelling your flight. You could literally just catch a ride back home with me."

"Hang on, Sam," protested Lara softly. "What are you on about?"

Sam pressed on, ignoring Lara. "And we could walk a different career path together. Where there'll be slight less chance of us being separated so violently. I almost lost my life, but what terrified me even more was the prospect of never seeing you again. To die alone… without anyone… without you. And when you came to save me, I was so terrified they would kill you too."

"It's tempting to stop here. It's not like I don't know fear," replied Lara, shaking her head. "But this… this is what I want." She pulled Sam close, hugging her gently and swallowing a lump in her throat. "We can still see the world together. I'll be your eyes, you know? And one day, you'll see me having so much fun you'll want to join me again. I'll make sure of it." She breathed in her lightly perfumed smell. "So you don't have to come to China this once. But next time, or maybe the time after that, you'll be enticed into joining me."

Sam cupped Lara's cheek with an affectionate hand, staring piercingly into her brown eyes.

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Lara. Don't lie to me."

"Did I lie to you on Yamatai? I would never leave you. I care so much for you it hurts more than you can imagine," insisted Lara, as she cradled the shaking Sam for many long minutes. The Japanese woman's skin felt slightly clammy, as if damp with fear for what could happen to Lara. For her part, Croft hated herself for torturing her like this. But something had changed within her since Yamatai. Staying in the UK probably was not for her. She still had the same urge, the same calm but burning desire, to go travelling. She knew Sam wanted more than anything to go with her too, but the trauma of being captured and nearly losing her life had changed her forever.

And she hated to even entertain such a thought, but a part of her felt relieved that Sam currently had little stomach for adventure. That would mean that she was going to be out of harm's way for quite some time.

"I'm so sorry," whispered Lara. "But like I said, I'm coming back to you, I promise."

"This is the least I could do. To pour in all the resources I still have at my disposal," replied Sam quietly. "To be as loyal to you as Roth was. And I can't help feeling the slightest curiosity at what you might find underneath the ruins of that evil desert. Forgotten dungeons? Palaces? I hate to say it, but… curiosity killed the cat – and we're both very inquisitive cats."

"That's the stuff," declared Lara, grinning cheerfully. Sam stared at her, like a bunny caught in the headlights. But it wasn't a panicked kind of vulnerability, more of a trusting openness that allowed her to bare the entire spectrum of her complicated emotions to Croft. She pulled away, hands trailing along Lara's arms. They stopped at each other's fingers, and lingered on them just for a few unhappy moments.

"Call me when you're in Beijing," demanded Sam.

"Yeah, I definitely will. Well. Then... I guess... See you later, then... good - "

Sam raised her hand, interrupting Lara's awkward farewell. She pressed a finger to her smiling lips. Her message was clear. _No goodbye_.

Even in the face of evil spirits, they would always be together.

Smiling in touched understanding, Lara released Sam's hand and turned her back. She stole a final glance at Sam, before grabbing her brown backpack and walking past fellow travellers, towards the immigration gate.

* * *

_Beijing Capital International Airport_

The flight was long but very comfortable, and when she stepped out of the jet and stumbled woozily down to plant her feet on the tarmac, a smart-looking Chinese lady in a crisp, black and white office dress was already waiting for her. Lara breathed in a dose of the notoriously foul Beijing air, her eyes meeting those of the woman in tight, black stockings and polished, formal heels.

She was really here. She was in the People's Republic of China. Her new story was about to start; a new world of adventure and odyssey opening its mysteries to her.

The Chinese woman, whose face was sharpened with lean and soaring cheekbones, began talking in slightly accented but fluent English. "My name is Wu Mei. I'm a translator. You're Miss Nishimura's friend, aren't you?"

Lara nodded uncertainly… "Uh, yeah. You're talking about Sam, right?"

"I was hired by Nishimura's company to show you around wherever you want to go in my country." Wu extended a hand, and Lara took it, feeling in her palm a strong, somewhat dominant handshake. "Welcome to Beijing. I was told you're on the trail of Western Xia artifacts. That's a rather unusual choice for adventurers and trekkers, but I'm sure upper crust women like you have their personal interests and quirks."

"Yes," said Lara, feeling slightly uncomfortable and put-off with Wu's unexpectedly forthright and almost confrontational language. Was Wu one of the Communist old guard, who disliked the moneyed classes out of principle? She didn't know that people like these, especially women as young and beautiful as Wu Mei, still existed in this stirring superpower. She shrugged. She wasn't going to let a wannabe cadre of the Party distract her ambitions. "I want to set off for the steppes of Inner Mongolia. But Sam asked me to stop in Beijing first to get up to speed on all the most recent developments in the region, so I don't go in there blind."

Wu nodded. "There are two people we'll need to approach for that. The first is pretty ordinary. Professor Zhang Chunghui is China's foremost – and by foremost, I mean only surviving – expert on Western Xia. He'll take you through essentially everything you need to know about Khara-Khoto – but the second gentleman holds the real grail we need: information about the whereabouts of the artifact you want."

Lara smiled, adjusting her backpack. "Can I be a bit selfish?"

"I thought you might already be, but go ahead," said Wu dryly.

_She really doesn't like me that much, does she_? sighed Lara silently to herself. "No disrespect to Professor Zhang, but I have a feeling I'd get more answers if I see the second man first. Then we can go see Professor Zhang later."

Wu's sharp eyes glinted. "As brutally honest as any Westerner. Well, don't say I didn't warn you. And don't think ill of me when you see him."

Lara was now genuinely puzzled. What did she mean by those cryptic words?

Just who was she about to meet?

* * *

While the grand, majestic Forbidden City is no longer inhabited, like the Palace of Versailles in Paris, it remains a potent symbol of China's history and imperial inheritance, a centuries-old symbol of continuity and culture in the face of relentless change and adaptation. One of these faces of change were the rows upon rows of streets that, in the past, would have been cleared daily to satisfy the Emperor's eyes when he condescended to join the common rabble. Now those streets were lined with bars, pubs, noodle stands, nightclubs that doubled as seedy soliciting joints for prostitutes, and dens for even shadier dealing. Lara was near one of the streets in the shadow of the Forbidden City. She had followed Wu out of their taxi (coughing uncontrollably, as it were, at the suffocating downtown pollution), and walked into a backstreet behind a busy avenue. They turned a grey corner. Then, another. Then, another... until they were standing before a dilapidated, rusty steel door above which hung a fizzling, broken sign reading, "Prosperous Heavenly Unicorn".

"Uh... Wu... what's this?" muttered Lara, her raised eyebrow about to disappear past her brunette's bangs, staring up at the somewhat phallic name of the... "Wait, is this a shop of some kind? A bar? A club? Who exactly are we talking to?"

"None of the above," muttered Wu, fumbling with a pair of keys and unlocking the great, big, primitive padlock that kept the door from screeching open. "You'll see." They walked down the dark staircase that yawned before them, with Lara feeling more nervous by the second. She glanced warily around as the lightless, two-storey staircase opened into a seedy lounge with cheap red light flashing unsteadily from three pairs of corny Chinese lanterns. Their shoes pressed carefully on the smeared, dusty floor. The whole basement looked spacious, but in a state of disrepair. Lara wrinkled her nose instinctively at the heady, misty smoke. She waved her hand, stifling the urge to hold her nose. In the background were muffled, moaning voices - they sounded sexual - were there prostitutes upstairs? "What is this smell? It smells like - "

"Drugs, right?" muttered Wu. "You'll get used to it."

"Which treasure hunter do you bring this time, Wu?" came a sultry, complacent voice. Lara brushed aside the heady incense and smoke before her. She was staring at a slim man sitting on a wide couch, in a crisp white shirt and well-tailored business trousers. His jet-black hair draped down his slit-like eyes, which resembled a malevolent fox's. His irises illuminated by the two golden Buddha statues behind his sofa, and his right hand was a long, slender wooden pipe decorated with a decadent, shining dragon. He crossed his legs, sitting back and almost sinking into his comfortable couch. "Oh, a ponytailed Westerner. We still get them around every now and then. Probably now food for the vultures on the plains of Mongolia."

"Lara Croft," said Wu, before spouting off at the man in a flurry of Mandarin. The sinister man nodded several times, before addressing Lara, speaking in fluent if heavily accented Chinese. "My name is Jin Teng."

"This man would fit right in with your kin, noblewoman," grimaced Wu bitterly. "He is directly descended from the Aisin Gioro clan that ruled China as the Qing Dynasty. They succumbed to revolution in 1912. After their flight from the Forbidden City, they Sinicized their surname to Jin."

"Then you're not Han Chinese?" asked Lara in surprise.

"Correct. I'm Manchu. Sorry to disappoint your expectation of a hair queue." The thoroughly modern Jin Teng raised his pipe to his thin, simian lips, and blew out a puff of intoxicating smoke, sneering with his incredibly narrow eyes at Lara. "I suppose Wu also wants you to see Professor Zhang. You were right to come down into my humble home. Zhang can't tell you much, not by way of useful directions. He is a law-abiding man, and law-abiding men are usually far too poor to buy art. Only those of the underworld know the veins through which artifacts of great price are sold and bought."

"Black market," deduced Lara grimly. Her hands were already at her sides, clenched lightly into fists. She had no gun with her - yet - but now she wondered if it would have hurt to acquire her arsenal earlier. "Why didn't I suspect this earlier? I'm a graduated student, not some undercover cop in a movie." She looked at Wu, bile rising in her throat. "We can't do this. This is ridiculous. I thought we were doing this cleanly."

"That's the point," said Wu, and her voice sounded sincerely regretful. "When it comes to hunting down Chinese art or historical artifacts, there's no such thing as clean."

"I can't believe you know these people," exclaimed Lara. "Druglords? Pimps? Traffickers? Who else is going to join our tour of Khara-Khoto?"

"You and I are the same kind, Miss Croft," proclaimed Jin, prompting Lara to look at him with fury. "The Crofts reaped generous profits from opium. Don't you know your family's history? The eighth Earl of Abbingdon's manor was built on the fortune he made trading with us in Hong Kong and Shanghai. My great-grandfather sponsored his business!" Jin inhaled a breath of the sweet drug languidly. "In the meantime, my own were smuggling and peddling our Emperor's collections to whoever would buy, including the Brits. And now I'm about to tell you what you want to know… how artifacts in this country are lost – and how they're found around the world. In our field of art dealing, there is no such thing as legitimate acquisition."

Jin licked his lips. "You owe me, just like your ancestors owe the Aisin Gioro."

"I owe you nothing, I don't want to know about your past, and we're not doing business," said Lara sharply. "Wu, I can't believe you would bring us here. Apparently, Sam's opinion of you is misguided."

"You have no idea, do you?" laughed Wu, in a shrill voice that highlighted her growing scorn and frustration with her British guest. "You have no idea about the cruelty and disillusionment beyond your sheltered world of champagne and glitter? How do you think people compete to win credit for archaeological discoveries? How do you think we've kept the hateful secrets of unholy artifacts? If Miss Nishimura and Professor Zhang understand the need to talk with those who have the real connections and knowledge, why can't you?"

"Where did you get the idea I was some spoiled brat?" snapped Lara, losing what was left of her patience with Wu. Frankly, she didn't care how the Nishimuras were related to Jin. She had faith that they weren't, and she wasn't naive enough to believe that her forebears had never committed any crimes. She was just getting fed up of Wu's overt dislike of her. Just what kind of people wanted the Constellation? Would they all be prowling Inner Mongolia? "I'm saying I don't trust this man, not that I want to bring some foie gras with me on the trip, okay? What the hell is the problem you have with me?"

"Pay Mei no mind," said the Aisin Gioro calmly, and Wu snorted, skirting Lara's hurt and angry gaze. "As you can see, she is an idealist. One of the last remaining students of Communism. Don't despise her, she gets it from her family. We don't want you to think badly of our country so soon into your expedition!

"But let's be clear, Lara Croft - I know about your misadventures on Yamatai. You only survived because you had no competitors except for a bunch of shipwrecked lunatics." Jin smugly breathed out another puff of opium. "But if you wish to enter the ruins, the dungeons, of Khara-Khoto, you _will_ learn who else is trying to following you. For those people can be even more unsavoury than what you think of me, and the Khara-Khoto dungeons... well. That should also concern you..."

Heart pounding, Lara bit her lip, watching Jin's untrustworthy sneer. She expected getting lost or even fighting supernatural creatures, but black market traders? Underworld crimes? Smuggled artifacts?

"Oh, yes," snickered Jin, his eyes shining even more intensely. "Did you think you were the only one after the Constellation? The Buddha head of the esoteric Tanguts? Please. Mind you, I don't want it, believe it or not. But as you put it, we art smugglers have our own... investment in tracking its location, and _your_ help will do nicely. Come, now. You're British, aren't you? Pragmatic. Don't lose your pretty little head when you have a prize to seize."

Lara glared at Jin, unable to help feeling that Wu had somehow conned her into accepting his unwanted assistance. Did she have any choice? More importantly, was he reliable, or one of the very people hunting the Buddha head?

"Fine. I couldn't care less who you are. Just don't betray me: I don't take well to disloyalty. Now tell me how you can help me get into Khara-Khoto and find that treasure," demanded Lara, her voice loud and clear.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	3. Chapter 2: Tangut Rising

**Chapter 2: Tangut Rising**

* * *

Hello and welcome back to _The City of Black Water_, Lara's new adventure in the universe of the rebooted 2013 game. Lara is in vast, majestic China to find an ancient artifact - a Buddha's head, specifically - that belonged to the mysterious Tanguts of the Western Xia empire. Her imminent journey into Chinese Inner Mongolia has forced her to make a deadly alliance with a black marker art trader: Jin Teng, a mysterious Manchu man with connections to the underworld of smuggling and trafficking.

Now all that remains is to actually go into the desert, and discover the secrets of Khara-Khoto's evil and desolate catacombs.

What adventures await Lara? And will she survive long enough to return to her best friend Samantha?

* * *

_Peking University, Department of History. 16:23 hours_

The Professor was a surprisingly stout and well-built man in his mid-forties, which Lara concluded was thanks to his many years out in the sun doing real fieldwork and archaeology, rather than spending all day cooped up in a library. When Zhang extended a hand to shake hers in his cramped college office, Croft immediately felt the callouses on it, his weathered, cracked fingers, and the constantly reopening blisters that repeated trips into the Chinese desert inflicted. "My pleasure to meet the heiress to the famed Croft bloodline," declared Zhang, looking up at her (he was half a foot shorter than Lara). "I will be your scholarly guide to the mysterious world of the Tanguts. I've spent a lifetime researching their heritage and place in Chinese history. I think I'm one of the only academics left in this business."

"Thanks," said Lara, dressed in a grey tank top and khaki jacket and shorts. It was nice to finally meet someone who wasn't creepy (Jin Teng) or deranged about Westerners (Wu), she thought to herself. "You've prepared all our excavation equipment and transport?"

"That's right," replied the Professor. "We will have to bring only the basics. No machinery; only the most basic of the lot like pickaxes and shovels. The Government is still very sensitive about archaeological digs in Inner Mongolia. The place attracts mercenaries, traffickers, and other unsavories like a dog's corpse does flies."

"Jin Teng," muttered Lara darkly. She still felt a profound revulsion to that man. "That descendant of the Aisin Gioro. He's so obviously a criminal, a trafficker in artefacts and fine art. He's made himself wealthy by smuggling priceless archaeological items to his no doubt global clientele of art collectors. He's probably bullied, intimidated, or even murdered his opponents to stay competitive. He's no better than the opium dealers that fed the moral rot of both my country and yours in the eighteenth century."

Perhaps she hated him because, deep down, she could see a fellow nobleman in Jin: a selfish, amoral, entitled, and privileged individual who behaved exactly how the old money of Great Britain were expected to. Perhaps the bad old days weren't quite over.

"Ah, so you've met him," said Professor Zhang gravely. "To be honest, every single one of your intuitions about that gangster is right. I admit that no one would associate with him if we could help it. He's more of a hazard than a benefit to China's cultural heritage. But his connections are so extensive that you can't navigate your way in the black market without his cooperation. Please don't despise Miss Wu for bringing you to him."

He paused, taking a deep breath. "Look at this."

He reached for a rolled up piece of paper on his desk and spread it out. Lara realised it was a map of the Tangut empire, for the geography only demarcated the limits of Western Xia's borders. They stretched from the northwestern provinces of Ningxia, Gansu, and eastern Qinghai to northern Shaanxi, northeastern Xinjiang, and south Inner Mongolia and south Outer Mongolia. Much of it was desert that led into the steppes of Inner Asia, Mongolia, and Central Asia (towards the Tibetan border and beyond).

"_Hei sui cheng... _the city of black water. What an accursed, evil name," said the Professor, jabbing at a single location on the map. "Its ruins are located in Alxa League, Western Inner Mongolia. We'll be going there by jeep from the oasis city of Jiucheng so we don't arouse any suspicion. We don't want the government to track us."

Lara nodded. It made sense. Vested interests in the Communist Party were sensitive about excavations or treasure hunts on their turf. They certainly wouldn't want anyone intruding on sites of sensitive historical significance without their permission. Thing was, no one would ever let a Brit like her get close, not with her intentions.

Her stomach sank as the truth suddenly became clear to her at last.

They needed that criminal Jin Teng and his connections, not for any evil motive, but just so she could get close to Khara-Khoto.

"I feel cursed," said Lara dully.

The Professor's expression was grim. "Then you must be getting into the mood. No one knows the fate of the Tanguts after their defeat at Genghis Khan's hands. Khara-Khoto simply vanished into the desert and the epicentre of their emperor's power, the Dark Castle, disappeared off the face of the earth. Make no mistake, Miss Croft. Where we are about to go to is haunted. The locals dread that place. Only the brightest of hearts like yours, and the blackest of souls like Jin Teng's, dare to set foot there, whatever the reason."

Somehow, that didn't comfort Lara. Not one bit.

* * *

The ancient oasis town of Jiucheng in northern China is usually a quiet city, with unassuming locals who will not mind you one bit as long as you behave like a good visitor.

Of course, Lara was rather flattered by the children who swarmed around her, fascinated by her foreign appearance and her smile. But their humbly dressed parents (who looked like throwbacks to the Cultural Revolution), many of them Muslim peasants, were more sombre upon hearing of where she wanted to go. Lara, the Professor, and Wu had joined up with a small entourage at the edge of the capital, which then took them to a small fleet of jeeps. But those jeeps were provided very reluctantly by the local conservationist society - not only were they starved of cash, they had apparently succumbed to local superstition about Khara-Khoto.

"He's telling us not to go," muttered the translator Wu, as Lara stared at an angrily gesticulating man. No longer wearing her jet-black office blouse, she had followed Lara's lead and opted for a pair of loose trousers and a tank top (she has also adopted Lara's ponytail, tying her long black hair behind her). The Professor still looked like an academic, minus the tacky bow tie and plus a pair of Timberland boots. "He says we would never dare to go to somewhere that has no water or livestock."

Lara shrugged. "I really appreciate their concern, but we can't turn back here. We'll take one jeep. That's all we ask." She looked down at the dewy-eyed, innocent children smiling up at her. "We'll make this our main base. And we'll need to come back for supplies, right? We might as well send our messages to the outside world from here."

The Professor nodded. "Sounds like we have no other choice."

* * *

And so they rode. The drive into the desert took many long hours, but Zhang only had to follow (deep into the wasteland) a trail of physical ruins, many of them in the form of tiles or earthenware. "This place was once a thriving civilisation," said the Professor, as Lara looked around, brown hair billowing past her eyes, the hot wind beating against her sweating skin. He was a very good driver - he must have made dozens of trips into the Chinese wilderness over his career. "Now nothing remains, not even bones. That is what disturbs people. Explaining the story of these people would have been so much easier if they actually left something behind."

His eyes narrowed. "And that's what the entire black market in the art world is searching for - secrets. Artefacts and mausoleums. Catacombs. Hidden worlds, buried beneath our very feet. The lust for power and wealth can almost supernatural in itself."

Lara leaned back against her seat, closing her eyes tiredly.

"Wu."

"Yes?" asked the Chinese woman.

"Something's been bugging me for these past couple of days. How are you, the Professor, and Jin Teng related to each other? You and Zhang are completely ordinary citizens working at a university. Jin is... a criminal. He's a smuggler, a dealer in stolen plunder. His influence comes solely from ill-gotten gains. What are two upstanding examples of Chinese society like you doing with him?"

The Professor continued driving in silence, his face grim.

"Long story," muttered Wu. "You probably realised the depths of our cooperation are more than just professional. We're not stupid enough to risk a Triad's help just to get some crummy artefact. We don't want to be executed. But I don't want to talk about it right now. Maybe when the time is right, I'll tell you everything."

Lara nodded hesitantly. "Wish you were here, Sam," she muttered to herself. "Things would feel a lot easier."

For the first time in a long time, she didn't feel comfortable around the people she was working with. This was not like when she was shipwrecked on Himiko's island.

After several hours of driving, snoring, and yawning, Lara suddenly heard the long-awaited cry. "There it is," breathed Professor Zhang, his voice rising to an excited shout.

"Khara-khoto, the centre and last resting place of the Tangut world."

The desertscape opened wide before Lara and Wu's eyes, and the two women stared out at the magnificent yet haunting, cursed scenic wonder. There were massive, stone ruins, some of them in the shape of domes with tips that reached for the sky... _stupas_, Lara realised, funerary structures built by pious Buddhists. Even further were the ruins of demolished limestone walls. These ruins had once been a city. This was no doubt Khara-Khoto. It looked bare, but here it was.

"We have to get there before the mercenaries do," said the Professor tersely. "Jin Teng told us. We're on a race against time."

But there were jeeps already there, humming idly in the distance. Peering at them, Lara growled in disappointment. They were too late. And dotted around the area were the shapes of burly men, many of them armed with rifles, submachine guns, and military knives.

Mercenaries.

Could they have been sent by Jin Teng? "Hired hands of the Triads? Has he betrayed us?" guessed Lara, as the Professor slowed down and drove cautiously towards them.

"No, but he was the one who warned us about them!" denied Wu. "He knows the ins and outs of the Chinese underworld, after all." She opened an armoured box, revealing a set of pistols. Another case, to Croft's shock, contained a taut bow, along with a case of sleek, redesigned arrows with deadly tips. How had Jin Teng known about her proficiency with the bow? Lara stared at Wu in surprise, and she shrugged. "He's provided us with some means of defence, too. He has eyes in many places. I think you should lay aside the suspicion aside for now."

"Fine, fine. I've just never worked with guys like him before."

Lara kicked open the door of the jeep and dashed towards the mercenaries guarding the violated site. Her boots rapidly scraped the sand and gravel as she quickly sprinted up the hill. The men were clad completely in desert uniform. The ancient towers and dead stupas loomed high above her, casting ghostly shadows on the scorching desert sand and gravel. "Take anything from here, and you're toast!" she barked at the men, who looked Russian. The design of the jeeps also seemed to indicate a Russian origin. She was surprised at the menace in her own threatening voice. She lifted up the bow she was clutching in her hand, and in her other hand was a menacing steel-tipped arrow. "I might look like a video game character, but I know how to fire this, gentlemen. I've had plenty of practice."

The earlier arrivals turned to look at her, their cold Slavic eyes looking her up and down. One of them raised their pistols, pointing it right at her, but Lara's reflexes were far from dulled. She released her bowstring, and the would-be marksman dropped to the sand, screaming as he clutched his punctured thigh.

"I have live ammunition, you know," barked Croft. "The arrows are a mercy."

The mercenaries looked at each other, muttered something in Russian, and then advanced. Some shifted to Lara's right flank, while others began to circle from her left. Their growling grew louder, before climaxing into a bellow of bloodlust. Lara could tell that the men were accomplished fighters. They surrounded Lara and attacked from all sides, at once. They wouldn't give her a chance to fire her bow again. Adrenaline surging through her veins, her skin shining with sweat in the desert heat, Lara glanced around her as they lunged. Her grimace broke into a grim smile as she dropped her weapon and raised her hands.

She was ready as they attempted to crush her between their much larger, heftier bodies. Lara weaved past one of the mercenaries and twisted upwards, her clenched fist shooting up between his hands and clocking him on the chin. She grabbed his stunned body and blocked two other charging soldiers, shooting her leg up between her struggling shield's legs and smashing her boot into her assailant's unsuspecting privates. Shoving her hostage at the crumpling man, she elbowed her away out of an attempted bear hug from her final opponent, twisting back and smashing her elbow into his sternum. She followed up with a knee into the staggering mercenary's stomach, and he also fell back onto the sand, toppled.

She glanced around the suddenly quiet desert, the silence punctuated only by the groaning of four downed men.

But there was one more. "You're the leader of these men?" called Lara at an approaching mercenary. She could sense it. This bald behemoth was especially large, his eyes especially dead and brutal. Unlike the others, he wore only a black singlet, exposing his bulging, intimidating muscles and broad frame.

"Sergei!" cried one of his subordinates, before shouting something in Russian. The huge man called Sergei nodded, and his men suddenly scrambled up and withdrew - running directly for the Khara-khoto ruins.

"They're going to blow up the sealed entrances! They want to plunder the mausoleums and catacombs!" screamed Wu, who had peeked her head up from behind the jeep's window. The jeep hummed at a distance as she watched with horror the man approaching Lara. "Professor, we can't just run away while they do this! We need to call the police!"

"You think they'll come out here for this?" scoffed the Professor. "We can only rely on our wits and Jin's help, if it ever comes."

"Get help!" cried Lara. "Find somewhere safe, anywhere." She stared at the dour Russian standing in front of her. Strapped to his waist were a long, sheathed military knife and a pistol. But he used neither of them as he advanced, striding towards Lara with clenched fists.

Lara brought her hands up in front of her again, bending her knees slightly and licking her lips. "What are you doing here?" she asked loudly. "What do you want with the treasures in Khara-Khoto?"

The vicious, wide swing from the skinhead was the only reply she was going to get. She weaved hastily, bobbing past his haymaker and dashing near, hammering into his ribcage with a flurry of strong fists. She couldn't tell if she had managed to bruise him, let alone break any of his ribs. He didn't flinch one bit, and she barely managed to slip past his right cross. She tried to attack again, but he was almost as nimble as she was as he parried her own cross with a counter that send her smaller body staggering back. It was unbelievable, but she was quickly forced on the defensive as he thrust a knee at her, before bursting forward in a brutal takedown.

The stunned Lara couldn't even sidestep or sprawl to stop his lunge before she felt her feet left the ground. Her back was already hurtling towards the hot sand. She tried to wrap her legs around him, to control his waist and force some distance between them, but the man was just so hefty, even her long, athletic lower limbs were barely enough to stop him crashing down on top of her. With Lara on the ground, the roaring, bellowing Sergei began to pound. Viciously. She desperately raised her forearms and gritted her teeth as he rained down a storm of massive fists, punching her relentlessly, repeatedly, and brutally. Lara felt her muscles burning, her bones aching, her skin going black and purple. She couldn't keep this up for much longer, and even if she held out against this onslaught, her arms would be broken beyond use later. She couldn't even push back as he suddenly took advantage of Lara's pain and changed position, forcing her legs aside and slamming onto her. She gasped from the sudden impact as he groaned in exertion and perverted bloodlust.

_Shit_!

He was straddling her, his tree trunk-like legs gripping her body painfully. She bucked and thrashed, but she couldn't break free.

Glaring down at her, a panting, enraged Sergei reached for her and grabbed her neck roughly. Lara felt her esophagus crinkling in agony as Sergei lifted her head and slammed its back against the ground, again and again, until she felt black licking away at the corners of her watery eyes. She could taste blood and sand in her mouth.

She couldn't do this.

Sergei was much too strong, too weathered, too merciless.

_Sam_…

"The Constellation belongs to us!" bellowed Sergei, eyes popping in rage. He lifted one hand and cruelly flung gravel at her face, blinding the shocked, coughing woman. Lara gagged and choked, spitting at him hatefully, unable to breathe. "You're not going anywhere after I'm done with you." His eyes glinted ferociously. "This is the end, Miss Croft."

_How does he know my name...?_

_Nothing's making sense!_

Lara felt her world flickering, the back of her head wet with blood, and Sergei's thick, terrifying fingers pressing into her skin and flesh, on the verge of cracking her bones and crushing her cartilage. She choked feebly, her scrabbling hands unable to pull Sergei's wrists away from her oxygen-deprived throat. And after a few horrific moments, her hands fell away too.

She was helpless, and she was dying.

_Sam, I need help. Please help me_.

Sergei barked madly in victory, and squeezed harder.

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST.**


	4. Chapter 3: The Black General

**Chapter 3: The Black General**

* * *

Lara could only think of Sam's smile, her smiling face, and those hands she held so often on their trips to the beach. Those hands, which she clutched at when she had finally freed Sam their owner from those deranged cultists on Yamatai. Those hands which cradled her cheeks in fond gratitude and in almost romantic friendship...

How darkly amusing that she would leave this world not holding those silken soft hands, but desperately fighting off the calloused, brutal fingers of a monstrous Russian titan.

"_Gaaaaaaaaaaaheheheheher,_" she moaned, her eyeballs bulging so painfully that she thought they would pop out of her sockets. She was losing oxygen.

She was slowly choking to death in the Russian mercenary's grip around her neck. Her hands had fallen away already, and she was bucking weakly, her thrashing only draining away what little energy remained while Sergei prolonged his deathchoke, methodically and calculatingly waiting for when her brown eyes would glaze over. He had pinned her down on the white-hot, scorching sand of the Chinese desert, where the proud Tangut civilization once stood. Beyond them lay the ultimate prize - the stupas of Khara-Khoto, Just a few more seconds, and she knew she wouldn't return from the flickering darkness. Even the glaring desert sun above them, beaming down on their bloodied, sweaty bodies, was fading away.

"Die, Croft," yelled Sergei in triumph, keeping a firm grip around Lara's nearly-crushed neck. The gagging Lara's pupils had already rolled back past her eyelids. "You are no survivor. Not in my book, little girl. _DIE_ – "

The roar of three gunshots echoed across the desert, as if to awaken Lara from her semiconscious state. Sergei heaved, his right shoulder blade bleeding. His bruised skin had been grazed by a bullet. He turned his bald head, blue eyes glinting madly. "Who - "

"Get back!" screamed Wu Mei, who was clutching one of the black handguns Jin Teng had given them. Her sweaty hands shook as she fired another warning shot - missing Sergei completely this time (the first was a lucky shot), but the message was clear. She scrambled towards him, away from the safety of her jeep while Professor Zhang cowered within.

Keeping Lara pinned, Sergei slowly raised his torso, slipping the deadly blade from the side of his military breeches. He kept his eyes on the trembling Wu, preparing to throw the knife at her with deadly accuracy. "I… I won't let you get close!" shrieked the Chinese woman, her expression clearly deformed with terror and dread. Her eyes were wide, and she had broken into a cold sweat. It was a bluff, and they both knew it. Sergei's attack would be a hundred times more accurate than any gunshot Wu could muster against him. Her knees began to give way as he moved his hand back to toss the knife at her face –

Sergei's eyes – or, one should say his left eye only – widened in shock as Lara's index and middle finger shot up past his arm and stabbed into his right eyeball, reducing it into a gooey mess of severed nerves, a ruined retina, and bloody jelly. Bellowing in agony, Sergei was so paralyzed by pain that he could not stop Lara from twisting out of his vice-like grip, her rejuvenated legs finally kicking up, breaking his lock and forcing him to tumble off her. Lara screamed in hatred and vengeance as she struck Sergei in the face, again, and again, with the same primal rage she felt against the cultists of Yamatai.

But the Russian was far from crippled. Broken though his grip was, he could still move – and move he did, scrambling away from Lara's furious flailing and swings. He pulled away and staggered to his feet, still woozy from the pain of his jellified eyeball. He stared at Lara in shock, before unexpectedly breaking into a chilling grin.

"Well-played, little girl," he grunted, blood still pouring down his cheek. He quickly tore at the cloth of his black singlet, folding it expertly and tying it around his head for a makeshift eyepatch. "I won't speak lightly of you again, Lara Croft. You're a worthy, powerful enemy in my eyes now."

"Fuck you," screamed Croft as she scrambled back up on her feet, bloodshot eyes glaring daggers at the Russian. Even in the blurry haze of red and fury, she was shocked by the bile that spewed from her bleeding mouth. Was this the primeval, instinctual will to survive that had kept her alive on Yamatai? "I'm going to rip your fucking head off!" she bellowed, her hands clenched into fists and itching to bury them into Sergei's face.

"She's still alive! _LARA_!" screamed Wu, as she raised her arm, gritting her teeth as she sprinted forth and threw her pistol high in the air. Lara glanced at the pistol spinning towards her, and quickly got the hint. Sergei swore, and for a moment, he looked like he wanted to tackle Lara again and stop her from catching the descending handgun. But he seemed to decide against it, and instead threw his spinning knife at Lara's head. Eyes widening, Croft quickly ducked, the gleaming metal only just brushing against her chestnut bangs. Swearing as he realized his last chance to kill her had slipped away, he bolted, retreating from Wu Mei and Lara's newly acquired weapon. He dashed past his men's vehicles, avoiding the bullets from a furious Lara, before, dashing towards the dynamited entrances to the Tangut stupas.

"We've got to chase after them," said Wu Mei breathlessly, somewhat amazed that she had survived this potentially fatal encounter. "We have no choice. We can't let those Russians plunder whatever they want to plunder. Jin Teng won't have that, not on our watch, but we can't contact the local authorities about this. Lara, what do you say?"

But Lara had already fainted. She had dropped her desert eagle and collapsed onto the sand, exhausted and spent. She had survived her first encounter with an adversary that wanted her dead, but just barely.

It was Yamatai all over again, except Sergei was even stronger than that mad solar cult priest.

Her world, just like the City of Black Water, had faded into oblivion.

* * *

_"Lara."_

_"Patience, Miss Nishimura. She's stirring. Give her time."_

_"Yes, Professor. Lara!"_

_"Her eyes are opening! Miss Nishimura, I beg you, don't panic and shake her! She'll feel worse."_

_"Sorry, Miss Wu. I just..."_

Lara felt her eyelids fluttering involuntarily at the beam of light. A flashlight...? No. The light was flickering, jumping, licking its way into the cool night air. As she focused her gaze on the worried faces above her, she realised she was in a warm shawl, made from Mongolian wool. She stared up at the stars above the Chinese desert, and then at Wu and Professor Zhang's worried faces. "You're alright!" sobbed Wu, who looked teary-eyed. She seemed worried sick. "That brute has to pay for what he's done."

And then there was one more face. And unlike Wu's, that face was less worried than eager, looking at Lara expectantly, as if hoping she'd be pleasantly surprised.

"Lara," whispered the familiar apparition, who hovered between the Professor and Wu.

Lara managed to croak out her name. "Sam..."

This had to be a dream. This had to be. But to her shock, the apparition was descending, and before she knew it, she was swept up in the ghost's arms, and from then on she knew that the Samantha holding her was real.

"I'm here. I'm really here. I'm right here, Lara. They told me everything. So don't say a word." Clad in a khaki shirt, trousers, and sandy boots, Sam clutched the shaking Lara to her, breathing in that unmistakable adventurer's scent, that lusty fragrance that combined the vigour of human sweat with the ferocity of the wild elements. "I couldn't stay away from you. I don't care where you go anymore. If you'll have me, then I'll stay here and support you. And..."

"You came all the way out here," gurgled Lara, almost incredulously. "You really did..."

Sam pulled away and glanced down at Lara's bruised body. Her eyes were deeply serious. "I will protect you from anyone who tries to pull something like what those mercenaries almost did."

"I'm pathetic," murmured Lara, chuckling and leaning into Sam's chest. She knew she was talking to Sam, but it hadn't quite hit her yet. So she just blabbered on, knowing only that it was safe to talk to Sam and that Sam was hugging her. "I couldn't even get into this place without having my arse served to me on a silver plate. He was so strong, a man hardened by murders and wars I probably can never imagine. I thought I was ready, Sam. How wrong I was. And I almost fucked up."

"But the point is that you didn't. Don't worry about that anymore," whispered Sam, her soft voice a coo. "You have done so well. I admire you so much, did you know that? And you're sitting here before me, how does that not make you a survivor?"

Wu sighed in relief, and the Professor chuckled. "The passion of youth makes me embarrassed."

"I need more than admiration," blubbered Lara, feeling herself crack. She held on to the woman who had come to be with her, gripping Sam's shirt tighter. "I need help. I need so much more than what I thought I needed. I must look so weak to you." Sam cradled Lara's head tenderly, oblivious to the discreetly retreating Wu and Zhang and staring in loving fascination at the other's trembling lip. The firelight of the bonfire flickered in her eyes as an invigorated Lara slowly fell asleep in her cuddle, sleeping a dreamless slumber that was free of Sergei's bloodshed and terror. What a difference her presence made! Even in these hostile ruins, in this new adventure that could easily have been a death-wish, Sam's arms were enough to whisk away any residual fear or self-doubt. That was why even as Lara slept, she held tightly on to the other.

Sam carefully laid Lara back down on her sleeping bag, wrapping her blanket tighter around her light grey tank top.

Her troubled eyes closed only when she could hear Lara's gentle snore.

"_Loving an adventurer is tough_."

* * *

The morning brought about a fresh surge of morale in the small entourage. Beside their jeep (Sam had arrived courtesy of her family's helicopter), the Professor unveiled the darkest secrets of the City of Black Water to Sam, Wu, and Lara. The hot sun was already roasting the desert - and their clothes.

"The last ruler of Khara-Khoto was a mighty Tangut general called Batir. Fearless and unbeaten, his epithet was the Black General. That is, until the Mongol armies came knocking at his door in this endless wasteland." Sweat trickled down the Professor's face as he squinted at the tower ruins. "Three times Batir's armies engaged Genghis Khan's horsemen, and three times they fought to a stalemate. So, he retreated into the Dark Castle, and told his people to prepare for a siege. It seemed like a good idea - it's always the attackers who are at a disadvantage when assaulting a well-stocked fort. But Batir's common sense was to prove his undoing and the annihilation of his people."

Lara hung on to each word, eyes wide in interest.

"At first, Batir's warriors did well, extremely well. They poured hot tar and oil into their catapults and flung them into the Mongol battalions. Their high walls protected them from the ladders. The Mongols suffered devastating losses, and Batir bet everything on their broken morale. But unfortunately for him, he had met a strategic equal in Genghis Khan. The Mongol leader spied a fatal weakness in the fortifications. There was only one tunnel under which the deep, underwater rivers flowed into Khara-Khoto, providing its citizens with their critical water supply. Batir discovered the detonated rocks blocking the water too late, and it was then that the kingdom began to literally wilt, its desperate people dying one after the other of thirst. Soldiers, mothers, wives, children - none were spared the wrath of Genghis, who determined that every breathing thing in Khara-Khoto should die an agonising death for resisting his sword. So desperate were the Tanguts that they began drinking the oil and tar that was supposed to be used against the enemy... black water. The City of Black Water."

Lara and Sam glanced at each other apprehensively as Zhang concluded the dreadful, tragic tale. "As his own soldiers died around him, along with his common civilians, Batir rode out with his remaining warriors for one last time against Genghis Khan. Needless to say, it was futile, a gesture of final resistance against the devastation that would follow. After Genghis personally slew and beheaded Batir, he rode into Khara-Khoto and set it alight. Its beacons would never light up again, and its physical remains sank into the sand and became one with the rocks once the Mongols moved on."

But the Professor wasn't done yet. His eyes glinted. "So it is after Batir's name and the calamity that toppled Khara-Khoto that we call it the City of Black Water. It is a cursed name. Some say his ghost still wanders this wasteland, doomed to self-reproach and guilt for that crucial tactical mistake that allowed the Mongols to burn his world to ashes. And it is believed that the ghosts and dead of this massacred place are buried deep within the necropolis lying beneath us, awaiting the day they can avenge themselves against the invaders that destroyed their homeland."

"Batir sounds more like a tragic figure than anything else. He…" Lara lowered her head, her face thoughtful. "He reminds me of the samurai general who committed seppuku because he failed to protect his lady, Queen Himiko."

"Himiko?" asked Wu, raising an eyebrow.

"Long story," said Sam hastily. "Point is, that Lara's troubled by the idea that we're entering into this sacred site of the dead."

"But that's not the case," said the Professor. "As per Jin Teng's suggestion, we're going to stop them."

"So that's why he recruited me," said Lara in realisation. She let out a low chuckle, amazed at the cunning of the Triad leader. "So this was what he was planning all along. To bring me along with you guys to stop his enemies from plundering what he wants in this place. I get my adventure, he gets his cheap manpower."

"What's going on?" asked Sam, slightly clueless.

"Let's just say, I've got a lot to learn about this exploring business, Sam," muttered Lara.

"Look, Miss Nishimura," said Wu, pointing up at the Tangut fortifications. "See those stone towers? They've dynamited holes in these holy Buddhist stupas."

"I can't believe it. They've really done it," whispered Sam. "So the mercenaries you told me about are serious. They're going to try and get those treasures, whatever the cost."

The Professor opened the back of the jeep, reached inside, and pulled out a heavy-looking, silver case. With some difficulty, he opened it, revealing to his astonished companions two perfectly crafted desert eagle pistols - clearly intended and built for a dual-wielding enthusiast. "A gift from Jin Teng, Lara Croft," he said quietly. "He said you would appreciate this. I can't believe a humble academic like me is dealing in arms on behalf of a gangster."

The amazed explorer slowly reached into the case and raised the two pistols to her face, staring at them in fascination. "Thank you, Zhang. Thank you, Sam," she replied, admiring the workmanship of the handguns. "I think we'll be able to hold our own against those bastards. We can protect these catacombs from desecration, Professor. And until Jin arrives with his Triads, I have a score to settle."

"Lara," said Sam in consternation. "What's our next step? Shall we pursue the mercenaries inside the catacombs?"

"If they find the Constellation before us, we don't know what they could do," said Wu nervously. "And what if the legends are true about that Constellation's magical power?"

Lara's eyes were narrow. "General Batir's corpse can wait. I have no quarrel with him. But a certain Sergei owes me a rematch."

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**NEXT CHAPTER: WAR IN BATIR'S CATACOMBS!**

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A/N: Thanks for checking out this adventure. I hope you find the next part exciting, as Lara's foray into the dark realms and dungeons of Khara-Khoto begins in earnest. :) The real face-off against Sergei's mercenaries begins!


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